Artemis Fowl: The Absent Effect
by Biosphere
Summary: Why can't the handsome boy genius seem to find happiness? It always seems to elude him, until he meets a beautiful, baffling young girl who takes him into another wild adventure! dashing Artemis Fowl x mysterious OC!
1. Chapter 1

Author's note: This is my first time making an Artemis Fowl and sending it here. . I hope you all really like it I worked had making each character sound exactly as they do in the books. I'd really like comments! I want to know that people at least read my story. And if you do please don't leave me hanging I'd like to know what you think and maybe even make some new friends in this comminuty!

Okay, this is taking place after the Atlantis Complex, not the last guardian. If I had any information wrong please tell me!

Butler rebuked Artemis fowl the second several times for "examining" his younger brothers. Which, to the young genius, was staring at them intently during their long vacation in the Maldives Island.

"This is a vacation Artemis. As physically painful it must be for you to, for once, take a break from thinking, you can at least stop staring at your little brothers like you're already ready to conduct an elaborate experiment on them." Butler warned.

Artemis looked up at his oldest friend, the man that in more than one occasion saved his life and was by his side during every magical, fairy related mishap he has come across. But the youth immediately was taken back by what he was currently wearing. He's never seen Butler without his black suit, save for one occasion where he unfortunately was at the wrong place at the wrong time, seeing his body guard walk out of the bathroom in nothing but his boxers. Artemis was never a self conscious person, finding his own looks to be pleasing enough where females would give him a second glance when they walked by him. But seeing Butler's bands of muscles ripple in every movement he made, made the boy want to drink some protein shakes and perhaps find a scientific way to enhance his own physical strength and appearance without the damaging affects of backne and shrinking family jewels. Artemis shook his head, sometimes finding his train of thought wandering, and focused on the problem before him. His friend usually sported a black suit, but now opted for a colorful Hawaiian shirt. Painfully colorful. "My God, I can feel my retinas burning." Artemis winced, "The colors don't even compliment each other, and the flowers scattered around in random order are dizzying to say the least." Artemis rubbed his closed eyes.

"Haha. You've grown a sense of humor now." Butler said, crossing his arms. "Juliet made me wear it..." He didn't need to say more. Artemis was unfortunate enough to also be caught in Juliet's 'fashionista' phase. He'd rather she was back in her Jade Princess wrestling phase. That was much less painful. There were several occasions where Juliet forced Artemis to dress up for her sake. And it was even more embarrassing that she took pictures afterward, and further insulted him by saying that his lanky, yes, LANKY body type fit being a male model very well.

"You can be a Calvin Klein model!" He remembered Juliet muse as she snapped another picture of Artemis in a ridiculous outfit of her own design.

Artemis figured that his absolute lack of physical strength made it easy for Juliet to push him into his outfits, but at least Butler, whose mere arm is double the size of his little sister, could at least put up a fight. But it seems that Butler was putty in her hands.

"How unfortunate..." Artemis murmured, loosening his tie a bit. He refused to wear shorts or a Hawaiian shirt like Butler, but in fact, wore the same clothes he wears wherever he goes. But his suits were not too keen in the tropical weather. He took off his suit jacket, folding it in his arm, leaving him with his loosened tie and long sleeved white buttoned up shirt. He took off his cuff links and rolled his sleeve up to his elbow. "And how dare you assume that I wish to experiment on my brothers. I was just simply observing the way that they spoke to each other. Seeing how children's minds develop at their age." He reasoned.

"Are you going to write a book for parents on how their children's minds work? I'm sure they'd be flying off of the shelves." Butler joked, cracking a smile at Artemis's obvious annoyance.

"No... But I suppose I can write something about siblings. How a younger female child can manipulate an older brother into doing whatever she wishes, maybe forcing him to wear tacky, loud Hawaiian shirts for example. I'll call it the Butler syndrome." Artemis retaliated, looking up at his giant man servant. Butler gave him a look that said, 'Too far', and the young man sighed. "I'm sorry old friend... I just can't relax. I find it very hard to. And this damn hot weather is making my temper worse."

"You WOULD be complaining about the weather." Butler said, looking out into the crystal blue waters, the wind rustling through the palm trees. Not too far away he can see Juliet playing with Myles and Beckett, creating castles in the sand. Right now they were in a nice cabana, where they served drinks, and offered the clients a beautiful view of the beach. "It's beautiful here."

"I'm glad you think so." Artemis mused. Butler looked down at him, and gave him an uncharacteristic pat on the back.

"You should try to act more your age..." His friend said, which made Artemis a bit mad.

"Such keen observation skills Butler, are you really suggesting that 19 year old boys aren't supposed to HATE tropical weather accompanied by his family and being in one of the most beautiful and expensive resorts in the world?" Artemis asked him, sarcasm dripping from his words. Butler gave him a look, which made the young heir rub his eyes again. "I know I know... Too mean... I'm sorry..." He sighed, "You go ahead and find my parents. I'm sure they are hiking in the mountains somewhere. Tell them I'll be at out suite in time for the pig roasting festival." He said.

Butler smiled, and patted him in the back again. "That's the spirit." He said, before walking off, almost having a skip in his step. Artemis watched as his body guard walked away so happy, then to Beckett an Myles and Juliet, who seemed to be having a blast. He lied. He wasn't examining the way they spoke to each other, how could he, they were so far he couldn't even hear what they were saying, and he didn't want to bother lip reading, seeing as they were still at that young age where farts and worms were still a main factor in their conversations. He was observing them to see how they are so happy... How they find such joy in little things such as building an unsound structure made out of sand and ocean water. And even Juliet, how she finds happiness just watching these two, and stepping in when she needed to. Even a genius like Artemis hasn't figured it out yet, or at least he hasn't figured out a way where he can apply it himself.

He went up to the bar, and being of legal age he ordered a drink. Perhaps a cold alcoholic beverage can soothe his frustrations as well as beat the heat. He looked around him, as he plucked the ridiculous mini umbrella from his glass and tossed it in the garbage by the bar. He sat at a table, looking out into the ocean. When he found that the light reflecting from waves hurt his eyes he turned and faced the people there to drink as well.

That's when he saw her.

A girl, by Artemis's estimates around 5'3, even though she's sitting down and slouching a bit his estimated proportions should still be correct. She had soft black hair, not raven like like his. In the sunlight, it looked to be dark brown and wavy, possibly from coming out of the salt water and drying in the sun naturally. He only saw her side profile as she played with a pink mini umbrella she had in her drink. She was pretty... But he's definitely seen more beautiful women. She turned her head for a brief moment and he got to examine her more clear, delicate features, a small nose, a gentle jawline, a heart shaped face, a tanned complexion, soft light red lips... Artemis had to shake his head again. He was a teenage boy, he knew that, he wasn't going to deny that on occasion he'd find himself staring at a pretty girl's legs, breasts, and lips. He was about to turn away, possibly banking her in one of the 10 most beautiful girls he's ever seen, a jewel from a quick vacation in the Maldives and be done with his perverted staring, but he found something interesting. She wasn't staring out into the ocean, dazzled by its beauty like most tourists were, and he didn't peg her for a snobby wealthy girl that's been in Maldives before and lost its interest in it. She was staring at a couple not too far away from her. Artemis followed her eyes to a a couple that sat a few tables away from her, an old man with a beautiful blonde haired young woman in a red bikini. He looked back at the nameless black haired beauty to examine her expression. She looked pensive, twirling the mini umbrella between her thumb and forefinger, like she was calculating something.

Artemis took a sip of his bitter, sweet drink and mulled it over. Perhaps she is the daughter of the old man, angry at her father's new mistress? Maybe she is a jilted ex lover, wealthy older men seem to be a magnet to beautiful gold diggers. Suddenly, the couple kissed, and the girl smirked. And Artemis got a good look at her lips as she mouthed the word, "Succubus..."


	2. Chapter 2: Curious

Maybe the young genius read her lips wrong, perhaps she said something along the lines of, "Fuck you bus!" Bus possibly being the older man's name, and if she had said that then this would just be a normal, every day human vs. human situation. But that didn't seem likely. Not with Artemis's luck. The young genius clearly saw her mutter "Succubus." Under her breath. This sent his mind reeling. What did she mean by that? Was she just making a crude implication that all gold diggers where just like the female demons of folklore that seduced men into their bedrooms and drained their their life force? Or does she know something that he doesn't?...

"What secrets do you know?..." Artemis asked the girl under his breath, watching her stand up and walk away, her violet bikini, mesmerizing the young genius momentarily with her nice, round derriere. Artemis didn't think of himself as a conasour of derrieres, but she did have a nice-

He blinked hard and shook his head again, getting his mind back on track. The girl was gone now, which left the loving couple still at their table. Artemis had to act fast. He had to find out. He fixed his jacket in his chair, grabbing a black napkin from a table nearby he got up and placed it on his forearm, mimicking the posture of a waiter. He grabbed an empty plate from a table that he walked by, perching his own drink ontop of it to make the ruse more believable. He walked up to their table and gave them a light bow. "May I get you something else to drink madame?" He asked.

The woman looked up at him, rather annoyed. "No thanks." She said, before looking back lovingly at her date, reaching over and cupping his hands. "You don't want any more drinks either, right my dear?" she cooed. That's when Artemis saw it. The glint in her eyes, the mesmer starting. The old man's lips quivered, staring into her lovely ice blue eyes, and he was immediately in her grasp again. The poor soul looked up at Artemis in a strange stare, as though his head was in the clouds, which was accurate with the affects of being mesmered. He had bloodshot eyes, and the poor man was mesmered so much that his retinas were visibly damaged. He couldn't help but pity the man. He looked worn out, tired, like his body has given up and this woman was just pulling the strings now. He probably had a family, grandchilden, his life's work, his pension, bieng eaten away at in an expensive trip to the Maldives by this magical seductress. "No...No drinks." He said, before looking back at his beautiful smiling girl.

Artemis nodded, and picked up their empty cups, before feeling something slip into his pocket. He ignored it, and bowed to them before leaving. When he was out of sight, he placed the plate down on a table and picked up his jacket. He checked his pocket, and found that the beautiful woman had slipped a note with her suite number on it. _Apparently wealthy old men don't fill your appetite. _He thought, memorizing it quickly before tearing it up.

"Foaly." Artemis said, kicking a shell aside, checking his loafers for scuffs as he looked at his hand held communicator. The centaur tried everything he could from getting Artemis's hands out of his personal communicator number, from switching phones, switching numbers, even moving. But the young genius seemed to find out every time. He suspects that Holly had something to do with the mudboy knowing.

Foaly fumbled around in the other end, and Artemis waited as he heard shuffling, clopping of hooves, and a female voice asking in the background, "Who is that honey?" And foaly responding, "It's just a friend back in LEP. I'll just take this outside." He said, and a second later Foaly's face was on the other end of the communicator, "What- How did you get my number? D'arvit I'm at home trying to have dinner with my lovely wife Artemis!"

"Can you give me some information about Succubi?" He just jumped right into the topic.

"Succu- I'm not a library mudboy, I don't remember EVERYTHING about fairy and magical history you know."

"Try."

"Ugh... Hold on." More clip clopping, some shuffling of papers, a few boxes, and opening of books. Artemis wiped some sand off of a large rock before sitting down on it. "Aha, here we go. Man I haven't opened this book since secondary school. Oh man that's Roger's handwriting, this brings back memories-"

"Foaly, please." Artemis said, trying to get the centaur back on track.

"Okay okay, hold your horses." He laughed at his own joke as Artemis inwardly rolled his eyes. "Here we go... Incubus and Succubus..." He red a bit, then continued. "Let me just sum it up. During the battle between humans and fairies, human's got a bit..." He sighed, "Dirty mudmen... There are a few instances that... They capture fairy women..."

Artemis closed his eyes, "You don't need to elaborate any further Foaly..." He didn't need him to continue, it was too disturbing to even think about, much less hear it.

"Yeah well...Basically, you got a human, fairy hybrid, very dangerous, longevity of a fairy as well as a good supply of magic in their systems to boot. I guess they still have some running around, causing trouble, draining men and women of their life force as well as their money." He looked at Artemis on his communication device. "So what's a good mudboy like you dabbling with succubi?"

"Thank you Foaly, that's all I need to know." Before Foaly can even say something snappy back, Artemis shut of the com phone. He pressed the round device to his lips, staring out into the sea. He wasn't the one messing around with fairy human hybrids... So why was she?...


	3. Chapter 3: F you Bus!

Artemis found the Pig Roasting festival quite frightening, whereas his whole family, Juliet and Butler included, seemed to love it. The fire dancers liked to get terrifying close to the seated guests as they tossed burning sticks around, spinning them and twirling them like batons. "Don't worry, I won't let you get singed." Butler said, more a joke than reassurance. Beckett and Myles seemed to love the attention of the mosquitoes that buzzed around them, and Angeline and Juliet struggled to get them to stay still as they applied more bug repellant on their stout little bodies. Artemis senior took up a conversation with a man sitting next to him, and Butler joined in in the small talk. Artemis scanned the tables, before his eyes locked onto the couple. They sat across from them, the seductress talking to one of the muscular fire eaters as her date stared dumbly at the flames of the bonfire in the middle if the circle of tables. He continued looking. If they were around... Then the girl shouldn't be too far..._ Aha_. He saw her, standing by a palm tree, away from the light of the flames, the moon on her back illuminating her, giving her an almost ominous back-lighting. But Artemis was 100% sure that it was her. He got up, getting the attention of Butler. "I'm going back to my room, old friend, this is not my kind of party." He said. In any other occasion, his manservant would have accompanied him back, but he was having a nice time with Artemis the senior, and he knew his young master well enough to know that he isn't enjoying the party.

"Alright Arty." Butler said, before turning back to join in on the conversation again. Artemis opened his mouth, ready to correct him on calling him his most detestable pet name, but he shut it and walked, deciding against it.

He saw that the girl turned and sunk back into the forest of palm trees, and picked up his pace. He didn't like anything physically tasking, and this light jog was already wearing at him. He pushed aside some of the large, rainforest like foliage, and looked for her. But she was nowhere to be seen, like she had disapea-

The young mastermind felt a dainty hand grab him by his arm, and pinning him against a tree. This knocked his breath out of his lungs, bieng caught off guard. Usually Butler handled these physical situations, but his giant body guard was still in the distance, laughing at a joke that Artemis Senior had told to the group.

"Who are you? Why are you following me?" The girl demanded. In the moonlight, and the fire in the distance, he saw her clearly now. She had light brown eyes, like the color of the sun beating down on the warm earth... Still as beautiful as she was in the distance, but slightly more threatening now was she held a knife to his neck.

Artemis raised up his hands in the universal sign of 'I'm unarmed, please don't hurt me.' "I'm Artemis, I saw you before, you-"

"Yeah, don't think I didn't see you eye balling me in the cabana." She pulled the knife back a bit. "What do you want?"

"You're after that succubus, aren't you? The one that has the old man eating out of the palm of her hand?" Artemis asked, measuring her expression, and she seemed to do the same.

"Succubus...What are you talking about?" She asked.

He was ready for this. "I know about supernatural beings. You can say I've dabbled a bit here and there."

The girl raised a perfectly arched eyebrow. "Dabbled?"

"Yes. You're a secretive person. So am I. Let's just let each other be respectively distant from our personal information, shall we?" Artemis said, fixing his shirt and tie. She examined him, not wanting to raise a question to why he's wearing a suit in such a place as the Maldives.

"...Yes, I'm after her. Her name is Gloria Wyrick, or so she says... She's been with my grandfather for half a year now... He's been...Different, after he met her."

"That's explainable... Succubi are powerful manipulaters." Artemis said, still trying to figure her out. She wore a white tank top and camouflage baggy cargo pants. The outfit almost reminded him of Holly... He made a mental note to call her later, just to catch up. "They have magic in them... Which is very curious... How do you know of their existance?"

"I thought that we were secretive people."

Artemis couldn't help but smile, despite himself. This girl was as stubborn as she was beautiful. "Allow me to ask you this then. How do you plan on disposing of this succubus then, miss..."

"Azalea..." She said hesitantly.

"Like the flower." Artemis mused. It definitely suit her, like her parents knew that their daughter was going to be as beautiful as her namesake.

"Yes." She got uncomfortable with him staring at her so intently, she switched her weight to her right leg, a sign of nervousness. "Why am I even telling you any of this anyway? Why are you so interested? You're just some weirdo that's following me around, and probably read too many young adult novels about vampires and the like." She said.

This made Artemis smile. "Why you ask?... I just feel like I might be of some help to you, Azalea."

"Alright. WHY would you help me?" She asked, her brown eyes intense, making her looked devilishly gorgeous, though he was sure that she wasn't aware of her affect her looks had on his mushy adolescent boy mind.

Artemis leaned in a bit, and dropped his voice to a whisper. "I went up the the couple, after you left, just to see if you were right. I looked the poor man in the eyes... You don't recover from looking at something like that. He looked tired and helpless to whatever she uses to control him. I'm not a very charitable guy, but this is one situation I think I can help you with."

Azalea looked back into his...Mix-matched eyes. He was handsome, she couldn't ignore that. "How can I trust you?" She asked, also taking a step closer. "How do I know that you're not an incubus yourself?... You're definitely as handsome as one... You're going for that... Classy vampire look which I'm sure can attract plenty of women into your clutches." she said, whispering like he did before. Artemis felt his blood rushing. She was so close to him... And he could smell her... Damnit she smelled good.

He had to stay focused though, "If I were an incubus, you wouldn't be standing here would you?..." He wanted to try it... At least once in his lifetime. He's seen it done in plenty of movies. He'd drop his voice, lean into her ear, and say something extremely seductive. He know's he's handsome enough where it would be pleasurable for the other party present, if he weren't good looking she would definitely recoil, and she confirmed him of his good looks just a second ago. He gave his most handsome smile, and that caused Azalea to blush, mouth slightly opening, as if trying to say something, but the words were stuck in her throat. She closed her mouth and looked down, which he found was adorable. He leaned in, his lips almost touching her ear. He could feel the heat radiating from her blushing cheeks on his cold neck. He paused for a second, and she didn't recoil. Good. "If I were an incubus..." _Come on...Something seductive..._ "You'd be in my bed right now..."

That's when she pulled back and slapped him.

A/N: Sorry for the cliff hanger! I love this story so much and I thank you for revewing my story! I'll post the new chapter up as soon as I can!


	4. Chapter 4: Reflex

Artemis was more shocked than hurt. He's been hit in more than one occasion in his adventures. This came as much as a surprise as Holly punching him in the face so many years ago. In that instance, he deserved it for kidnapping her and holding her for ransom. And in this case... A slap would have also been deserved as well.

"Are you mocking me? What was that for?" She demanded, then lowered her voice, fearing that someone might hear them.

"I should be asking you that." Artemis rubbed his right cheek, a visible red on the canvas that is his pale complexion. He got frustrated. This girl can't seem to take a joke... And it was just quite recently that he had grown a sense of humor. "I was using that as an example of the parallel thought that is of me being a magical seducer. I'm as much a, incubus as you are a succubus, you foolish girl."

"Oh that's rich. Do you think that this is the right time to be... To be making parallel comparisons?" She demanded. "You're the foolish one!"

This hit Artemis more than the slap in the face. He was shocked and appalled that he was just called _foolish. _Him. Artemis Fowl II, with the IQ of 304. Above 200 is already considered to be _"unmeasurable genius." _And this girl just called him foolish. "I don't think my actions warrent such an accusation!" He almost lost his temper.

"_YOU_ shouldn't call me foolish either! You could have just told me that you weren't an incubus!" Shockingly, her face was still beautiful, if not more so, when she is angry.

Artemis took a deep breathe to calm down. "This is getting us no where. I shouldn't have done that, I apologize." He tried to be as gentlemanly as he could. He would get no where if they continued this back and forth, "I want to help you... I understand if you think that I shouldn't be involved at all... But after I looked into your grandfather's eyes, and saw the damage that woman did, I feel morally obligated to help you."

Azalea looked him in his mix matched eyes. She couldn't figure him out... He looked honest enough. "How do you suppose you can help me?" She asked him. He may look honest and damn good looking, but she was still wary.

Artemis was prepared for this. He took out the note that the succubus slipped into his pocket. Her suite number. "I'm assuming that she isn't sharing a room with your grandfather if she's handing this out to every handsome man she sees."

"What makes you assume you're all that handsome..." She said, which made Artemis smile. _She's quite the firecracker. _She reached for the slip of paper, but Artemis pulled it just out of her grasp. He had a good height advantage over her, though if she had known that he had little to no athletic ability she'd surely find a way to muscle it out of his hands.

"I'll give this to you on one condition." Artemis said, leaning forward a bit, waving the paper infront of her face before pulling it back when she tried to reach for it. It was cruel, but fun. He's spent several days where his mother pulled him away from his research because he_ 'wasn't spending enough time with his younger brothers'. _And since they can't quite grasp the ideas of quantum mechanics yet, and they absolutely can't sit still when their older brother is trying to teach them simple etiquette in the French language, Artemis would sometimes dangle an object of their desire infront of them, and pull it back right when they are about to grab it. Juliet called it cruel, and he simply explained it as_ 'Training their fundamental physiologic response time and stimulating the their brain stem.'_ in which point Juliet would snatch the object away from the genius's hands before he could even blink. "I want to help you dispose of her."

"I think you've done enough." Azalea said, before snatching the paper from his hands. Clearly she has a more stimulated brain stem... "Thank you for your help Artemis. When my grandfather is back to his old self, I'll be sure to tell him that you assisted me in saving his life." She gave him a smile, before turning to walk away.

"Wait! Let me help you more." He said, catching up to her and walking beside her. "I'm aware how strange this situation might be for you, but please hear me out."

"I'm sure I can handle myself." She said. Artemis could hear the dismissive tone that she had in her voice.

He didn't like that she was picking up her pace. He was pretty sure that soon she will start running, at which point he couldn't possibly catch up. The boy stopped in front of her, almost colliding. "How, may I ask, are you even going to_ 'get rid of her'_?"

Azalea looked at him as if he had two heads, probably wondering why this strange man was being so persistent. She thought about it, then took out the knife she had before. "I don't know... I was thinking of just threatening her to leave. Give her a good scare."

Artemis nodded. "I'm sure that would work. To get you _arrested_." He didn't like being so brash, but as pretty as this girl was, she lacked the skill of planning things out. "I consider myself quite a good strategist... It has to be something more complex... more severe than a scare..."

Azalea picked up on his thought quickly. "You mean killing it."

Artemis could catch a glint of coldness in her eyes. While others would have cringed at the suggestion of murdering a creature that was partly human, she seemed to be extremely calm. He found that quite peculiar. "If the situation calls for it. Let's keep that as a last option." She thought about it. He could tell that she was having a difficult time deciding on whether or not to trust him. "Think about it... Tomarrow, meet me in the cabana by the beach at 10 if you wish for my assistance..."

Azalea's eyes were downcast. She nodded, "I'll think about it."

"Please do..." Artemis hated how his voice sounded when he said that. It wasn't calm and cool as he'd hope it would be. It sounded soft, and to his ears he sounded almost like he was pleading. He watched her walk away, disappearing into the forest of large green foliage and palm trees. He stood there for a few more seconds, then turned and stuck his hands in his pockets, walking back to his family.

A/N: I'd be upset if I didn't say Happy birthday to Artemis Fowl, whose birthday is September 1. Happy belated birthday Artemis!


	5. Chapter 5: Name

Artemis tried not to get his blood alchahol level too high. But the more time passes 10 o'clock, the more he felt he needed a drink. It was 11, and she still hasn't shown up. The young mastermind delved deeper and deeper into disapointment, until at 11:30 there was still no sign of her in sight. He felt a bit hollow as he emptied out another glass of margarita. He just came up with a plan to track her down and possibly force her to allow him to help, when he heard something strange in the waters below him.

"Artemis..." A soft voice called. He set his glass down slowly, looking over into the ocean beside him. He could see her, her head and neck bobbing a bit in the blue waters. "You suddenly feel an urge to get up and look at the ocean longingly." She said. He looked around. There were a couple of people there, the closest person bieng the bartender, who was focused on his customers. He got up and casually leaned over the bamboo banister, looking out into the ocean and the nearby beach, only occasionally looking down at her.

"Why are we taking such precautionary measures? Couldn't you simply come up here and talk?" He asked, which quickly got him shushed.

"I can't let my grandfather see me there. It'll be two days in a row that I've been following him around, his date will get suspicious." She informed him, her voice drowned out a bit by the waves that hit the pillars that held the cabana up over the waters. Artemis opened his mouth to say something else, but she shushed him before he could even utter a word. "Don't talk, just listen." She said.

Artemis didn't like the prospect of taking orders, and she was being strangely cryptic and much too paranoid for the situation. Though e did understand that the woman saw him yesterday as a waiter, so it would rouse even more suspicion if he was seen sitting down at the tables as guest.

"Now, you feel the sudden urge to take off your pants and just jump into the beautiful waters, the way you've wanted to this entire vacation." She told him.

Artemis clenched his jaw and spoke through gritted teeth. "I will do no such thing..."

"People do it all the time. Quickly! I can see my grandfather coming!" She called in a hushed voice.

Artemis was beside himself. He paused for a few seconds, thinking it over, then stood straight, taking his pants off. Several people were staring at him as he set his belt and black suit pants on his chair, taking off his black blazer off last.

"There you go! Let loose!" The bartender egged him on, which got a few more cheers from other people. Artemis didn't turn back to look at them or else they'd see that his face was a cherry red._ God I'm so mortified... _He climbed over the bamboo banister, and looked down at Azalea's smiling face just a few feet down. _You're lucky you're beautiful... _He took a deep breath and jumped in. The water was warm, the bubbles around him made it hard to see for a few seconds. He surfaces, and Azalea swam to him.

"Come on." She allowed him a second to wipe his face before taking him under the cabana. The water was shallower there, so they were able to simply stand as they looked up between the floor boards and see people's feet pitter pattering above them.

"I was worried that you didn't show up." Artemis said, wading in the waist deep water, blinking several times because of the salt water that managed to get into his eyes. He looked over at her, and he could see her smiling at him. "What is it?"

"You actually jumped in..." She said, her smile widening as she let out a laugh. Artemis gave her a dumbfounded look, which made her laugh even more. "My grandfather wasn't even coming."

"Do you mean to say...I didn't need to come down?" He asked, too shocked to be angry quite yet... But he was getting there.

She covered her mouth so she wouldn't be too loud. As beautiful as she was when she laughed Artemis can imagine her with little red horns and a tail. "No! You have plenty of time to go and change into a swimsuit and come back...You just... Stripped put of your pants and came down!"

"Well that was me displaying my trust in you. And I hope you can extend the same courtesy to me." Artemis said, trying VERY hard not to lose his temper. "As well as some respect..." His last sentence made her stop her laughing because of the seriousness of his voice.

"You're right... I'm sorry."

"As you should be," Artemis was satesfied with her apology, as he rolled up his wet sleeves to his elbows, "This shirt and tie costs more than your vacation here..."

"I'll be sure to reimburse you..." She said, looking up at the people as they walked by over them.

Artemis looked at her, stealing glances at her wet body and golden bikini, how her long hair clung to her shoulders and neck and breasts. "Yes well, I'll keep that in mind." He said. She was focused on the people above them, "Azalea-"

"Call me Az. It's much less obnoxious." She said, a bit detached as her focus was elsewhere.

"You find your name obnoxious?" Artemis asked, raising an eyebrow. "That's peculiar."

"I'm sure you've felt the same way, being named after a Greek goddess." She said, as she began walking a bit, still looking up. Artemis followed her, holding the wooden pillars for support as he waded through the water as noiselessly as he could.

"I'm named after my_ father_ actually." He hated having to repeat that over and over. "I hate that it's associated to a goddess."

She smiled, looking back at him, "I like it."

Artemis blushed, then looked away. "Yes, well that makes one of us."

"Perhaps we can trade names." She suggested, smiling as she looked back up.

"But of course." Artemis said, smiling at the joke.

"Let's draw another parallel by giving you a more feminine name. But perhaps the teasing will increase when people see that your new name is much worse than your last?" Her smile was brighter. He could tell that she loved to joke, and he found that he loved her jokes as well.

"Perhaps." He laughed, "Perhaps they'll pity me. I've been demoted from a deity to a flower."

Azalea smiled, looking back at him. "I don't like my name... It doesn't sound like me."

Artemis smiled back at her. "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

She smiled, raising an eyebrow at him, moving her hands back and forth in the waist deep water. "So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd."

Artemis placed his hands on a barnacle infested wooden pillar, were he in any other situation, we wouldn't dare touch such a thing. "Shakespeare is a wise man."

"I'm pretty sure you just quoted Juliet." She teased.

"I was fishing for a quote from Romeo, but Juliet's fit the situation most."

"I'm surprised you're quoting Shakespeare at all. Are you trying to woo me with your knowledge of romantic literature, Mister Fowl?" She asked. There was that teasing smile again.

"Woo you? My dear, knowing you most likely are not so easily wooed by the romance of Romeo and Juliet. It's a very sinister play, most people just assume that it's all romantic. Perhaps you're more attracted to the violent aspect? The hate, the murder." He asked, teasing her as well. Azalea's smile melted, and at that moment Artemis knew he crossed a line of some kind. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to assume-"

"It's alright." She said dismissively, the playful tone gone in her voice, replaced with a cold, seriousness.

Artemis kicked himself inwardly. He possibly ruined all chance he had of gaining her respect by something so small as a comment about an observation he made about her character. They stood there silently for a moment, before he collected himself and spoke. "Az, I-"

She closed the gap between, placing her hand on his mouth as she signaled him to be quiet by putting her index finger on her pursed lips. She moved her hand away as they both looked up. It was hard to tell between just the small gaps between the floor boards, but the woman was definitely the succubus Gloria, and she was alone. "Where's my grandfather?..." Azalea murmured. The footsteps stopped right above them, as if she had just heard her. Now it was Artemis's turn to shush her. He turn to grab her by her waist and covered her mouth. They both held their breath as Gloria looked around, hearing a female voice that didn't belong in the crowd around her... Being a hybrid gave her a heightened sense of hearing. She scanned the area, then flipped her blonde waves over her shoulder and dialed a number on her smartphone, walking to the end of the cabana and placing her other hand on the banister. Artemis watched her footsteps walk away, then became all too aware that his hand was on Azalea's waist, that they were pressed together so close he could feel her heartbeat through the wet fabric of his expensive dress shirt. He gently released her as they followed carefully after the succubus's footsteps.

"It's Gloria." They could hear her voice clearly. "Hah, of course. With my looks I could have hooked him to me without the mesmer." She laughed. Artemis watched Azalea's expression throughout the conversation this woman had on the phone. "Yes, he's eating right out of the palm of my hands...Silly old fool. He is persistant though, I still can't mesmer the idiot's bank codes quite yet... I know!... Look, Don't you dare pester me Simon Cambell..."

"Simon Cambell..." Azalea muttered to herself, which Artemis found was a bit curious.

"I know... Don't worry, I'm on it. His brain is getting weaker and weaker. I'll get those bank codes even if that means turning the old geezer's brain into goo."


End file.
